Vatican Forgives Lennon

[MA-Caver]

Vatican forgives John Lennon for Jesus remark

11/22/2008 3:00 PM, Reuters
http://music.yahoo.com/read/news/61898954
VATICAN CITY (Reuters) – The Vatican's newspaper has finally forgiven John Lennon for declaring that the Beatles were more famous than Jesus Christ, calling the remark a "boast" by a young man grappling with sudden fame.
The comment by Lennon to a London newspaper in 1966 infuriated Christians, particularly in the United States, some of whom burned Beatles' albums in huge pyres.
But time apparently heals all wounds.



<snip>"The fact remains that 38 years after breaking up, the songs of the Lennon-McCartney brand have shown an extraordinary resistance to the passage of time, becoming a source of inspiration for more than one generation of pop musicians," it said.

42 years later and they NOW forgive him? ... Wonder how he would've taken it if he were still alive?. Probably would've written a song that just edged with sarcasm... remember "The Ballad Of John & Yoko" ?

38 years later after breaking up... hard to "imagine" (but it's easy if you try) and their music just still rocks on. It wasn't just Lennon-McCartney either, Harrison and Starr/Starkey had individually & collectively made their significant contributions to the Beatles.

Still that "we're more popular than Jesus" remark today wouldn't have caused as much ire except among "radical" fundamentalists. Anyway it was a joke, tongue in cheek remark about their fame that just was at the time unlike any ever seen (except of course by Elvis-mania).
I still find it sad that those blokes got thoroughly ripped off by the lack of royalties from merchandising, concerts and record sales when they hit the states. To my understanding they received a pithy sum for their concerts and record sales and just about nothing from all the Beatle-mania merchandising. There SHOULD'VE been a law back then.

 

[grydth]

The time for a gesture like this would have been right after Lennon's statement was made. Imagine all the silly outrage that could have been averted.

Now, this is superficial and silly. Where, indeed, is either the sin or the repentance here?

If it takes you 42 years to forgive something this trivial, are you any example to follow?

 

[MBuzzy]

I'd have to agree there. Too little, too late. Especially from an organization that preaches forgiveness, but it often seems that they practice condemnation.

 

[arnisador]

Eh, big of them.

 

[MA-Caver]

I'd have to agree there. Too little, too late. Especially from an organization that preaches forgiveness, but it often seems that they practice condemnation.

True, but then again they might have not thought about it until some jr. priest walked by one of the cardinals humming a Beatles tune to himself and the cardinal went... *ding* :idea: "ohh yeah, him!"

 

[Gordon Nore]

If I read this correctly, Lennon has been forgiven by the Vatican for expressing an opinion.

 

[Carol]

Perhaps it would have been better if the Vatican didn't forgive him at all.

 

[Cryozombie]

If I read this correctly, Lennon has been forgiven by the Vatican for expressing an opinion.

Actually, he was forgiven for Blaspheming the man they consider a savior.

If I came on here and called someone an *******, it would be opinion, but it would still be wrong by the standards of Martialtalk... and my understanding of the Sniping policy, unless it has changed is the points that earns me NEVER go away, so at least the Vatican is more forgiving than Bob.



Sorry Bob.

 

[Gordon Nore]

Actually, he was forgiven for Blaspheming the man they consider a savior.

If I came on here and called someone an *******, it would be opinion, but it would still be wrong by the standards of Martialtalk...

But John Lennon didn't call someone a *******. He said The Beatles were more popular than Jesus.

...and my understanding of the Sniping policy, unless it has changed is the points that earns me NEVER go away, so at least the Vatican is more forgiving than Bob.

Sorry Bob.

Now here's a test of forgiveness: The Bible is more popular than MT.

 

[Xue Sheng]

Not bad actually for the Vatican, I don't think they forgave Galileo until the 1970s or 1980s for saying the earth revolves around the sun

 

[Tames D]

But John Lennon didn't call someone a *******. He said The Beatles were more popular than Jesus.

Now here's a test of forgiveness: The Bible is more popular than MT.

Perhaps at that time his statement was not untrue?

 

[Cryozombie]

But John Lennon didn't call someone a *******. He said The Beatles were more popular than Jesus.

Yes, but the point is no less valid, To the Vatican blasphemy is blasphemy regardless.

YOU call it opinion, they call it Blasphemy. Or we could look at this another way.

If it's OK for John Lennon to say it, because its his opinion...

It's ok for the Vatican to call it Blasphemy, because it's their opinion. So they then have the perrogotive to forgive or not. How's that?

 

[Archangel M]

Name me another religion that bothers to apologize for ANYTHING.

Which is worse...the Church forgiving, or people being offended at the Church forgiving? It apparently would have been better for them to have said nothing.

 

[Gordon Nore]

Name me another religion that bothers to apologize for ANYTHING.

They didn't apologize; they forgave him. To my knowledge, he has never sought an apology from the church. He did later qualify his remarks and express regret over offense that the remarks caused.

I don't even know if Lennon was Catholic.

Which is worse...the Church forgiving, or people being offended at the Church forgiving? It apparently would have been better for them to have said nothing.

I'm not necessarily offended by this, I just don't get the point of it. I haven't been able to find the original article from the Vatican publication online, which might shed more light on this...

 

[arnisador]

Name me another religion that bothers to apologize for ANYTHING.

Nothing wrong with apologizing, but if they were less quick to judge they might have less for which to apologize. How often must the Buddhists apologize for some offensive thing they've said?

 

[grydth]

Now here's a test of forgiveness: The Bible is more popular than MT.

You may expect forgiveness from Bob in November, 2050. Or, Bob may riot outside your home. Or........

 

[grydth]

Name me another religion that bothers to apologize for ANYTHING.

Which is worse...the Church forgiving, or people being offended at the Church forgiving? It apparently would have been better for them to have said nothing.

I see where you are trying to go, but your first sentence may also be taken as a convincing condemnation of all organized religion.

Yes, it would indeed have been better to say nothing.

 

[JadecloudAlchemist]

Experience has sown few seeds of doubt in him: not that his mind is closed, but it's closed round whatever he believes at the time. 'Christianity will go,' he said. 'It will vanish and shrink. I needn't argue about that; I'm right and I will be proved right. We're more popular than Jesus now; I don't know which will go first-rock 'n' roll or Christianity. Jesus was all right but his disciples were thick and ordinary. It's them twisting it that ruins it for me.' He is reading extensively about religion.

John seems to have been speaking that if corruption within Christianity keeps going on it will loose popularity which would make The Beatles at the top of their game in 1966 more popular than Jesus.

At this time period Rock and roll was very popular so it could be safe to say his comment was crude but in some ways correct.

I doubt John would really care if the Vatican forgave him or not he seems like the kinda of person that does not concern himself in that manner.

 

[Gordon Nore]

John seems to have been speaking that if corruption within Christianity keeps going on it will loose popularity which would make The Beatles at the top of their game in 1966 more popular than Jesus.

At this time period Rock and roll was very popular so it could be safe to say his comment was crude but in some ways correct.

I doubt John would really care if the Vatican forgave him or not he seems like the kinda of person that does not concern himself in that manner.

Thanks for posting the full quote, JCA. I had forgotten it.

 

[Ramirez]

I doubt John would really care if the Vatican forgave him or not he seems like the kinda of person that does not concern himself in that manner.

Yep, I don't think Lennon gave a rat's *** what anyone thought about him.